This Dust Was Once the Man

This Dust Was Once the Man - meaning Summary

Lincoln Remembered as Savior

Whitman’s short tribute compresses grief and reverence into a few lines. He reduces Abraham Lincoln to "this dust," while recalling his character as gentle, plain, just and resolute. The poem credits Lincoln with saving the United States from the "foulest crime in history," framing his death as loss of the man who preserved the Union. It registers national calamity through personal elegy and civic gratitude.